Anastasia Mironova Why foreign murderers can sue for the right to stay in Russia? 08/29/2024, 08:01

The State Duma was presented with a proposal to ban foreigners with criminal records from entering Russia for life. I immediately went to check. To tell the truth, as far as I can remember, we have been talking about depriving convicts of the right to enter. And there were always pitfalls. Yes, back in April, the Liberal Democratic Party submitted a bill; almost word for word! – to ban foreigners with criminal records from entering Russia, whether they are erased or not. Moreover, we were talking about crimes of any seriousness. Then something went wrong, and this time another party, New People, is introducing a similar project. The text of the initiative is a bit more specific: it is stated that we are talking about foreigners who commit crimes in Russia and “other states”. Does this mean that migrants who steal cars or beat up passers-by in their own country cannot come to us? Unfortunately, none of the deputies explain what they are looking for and whether we can count on a complete ban on entry for foreigners with criminal records.

Frankly, I generally do not believe in this initiative. Because I remember how we discussed all this not for years, but for decades. And there is no result. Even those who were convicted of murder in our country can return to Russia. The procedure is simple: they serve their sentence, are released, and then the decision of the Ministry of Justice to deport the convict for a certain period comes into force. For serious and especially serious crimes, this is an average of five to eight years. Accordingly, if they were raped, they can serve three or four years in prison, then live at home for another eight years and return. If they live until 20, they will be with us again after 30. They will also receive citizenship, why not?

Moreover, there are currently many clues in our country that would allow the Justice Ministry’s ban on staying abroad for a person convicted of a crime committed against us to be lifted through the courts.

You will be surprised how many law firms and law offices there are that help migrants bypass entry bans. Including – they explain how to do it for free on their websites. Why are there criminal records against foreigners in Russia? Moreover, we are talking about those who have already been convicted in our country. Why should our people, lawyers and defenders engage in such a shameful business, to send back to the country criminals who have already caused harm to Russians? Is it really just money?

There is even a general ban on those who raise their hand against us at home, until they work hard. And if this ban continues, there are many ways to get around it. Therefore, the issue of total removal of biometrics from migrants is constantly being raised, but for now it seems technically impossible. As a result, there are many cases of criminals returning with fake names and foreign passports. How will those who commit crimes on their own territory be punished? Are you sure that their homeland will provide us with databases for all criminal convictions? I get the impression that the Russian Federation is for some reason very embarrassed to ask for these bases from our “partners”. As if the partners will be offended and go, for example, to NATO.

Setting up the fingerprint collection and correctly identifying the passengers is half the battle. To do this, simply install a scanner at each border point. And do not accept other people’s biometrics. We install our scanners, compare the prints with the database and … and the question is: what to compare with? Who will give us a database of fingerprints of criminals?

I fear that other countries are interested in us recruiting their killers to their side.

By the way, last year in St. Petersburg, the issue of collecting biometrics from migrants once again arose. The city department of the Investigative Committee called on the deputies to allow scanning of retinas and DNA collection from migrants. From here, for example, I came to the following conclusion. First, fingerprints alone are not enough to identify and explain migrants. Second, migrants can be so dangerous that the budget is ready to spend a lot of money on their DNA tracking.

Personally, in this case, I can’t understand why they are allowed in if they are so dangerous. I am not the only one asking these questions. I get the impression that the majority of Russians are not happy not only with the mass influx of immigrants from Asia, but also with the general visa-free regime with these countries. We are distrustful of new attempts to control immigration, because there seem to be a lot more immigrants. Statistically, there are fewer travelers, but many of those who came earlier stayed with us permanently and moved their families. I feel that our people look at the problem with a negative eye. It is like a disaster that they could not prevent because they were not asked.

And the worst thing is that many politicians and officials already seem to have a premonition of disaster. In England, the issue of immigration is increasingly being raised in the State Duma. How long has it been since Alexander Bastrykin spoke about immigration and ethnic crimes? Recently, the State Duma proposed to ban foreign workers without high qualifications from bringing their families to Russia. And a few days ago, the “Fair Russia – For Truth!” movement proposed to deprive foreigners of acquired Russian citizenship for violent sexual crimes, attempts on life and assault on a government official. The latter was probably proposed after a series of clashes between immigrants and the police.

I personally have been writing for a long time about the deprivation of citizenship of foreigners for crimes and simply for antisocial behavior. I am sure that all Russians, except those who directly feed on migration flows and cheap labor of visitors, want this. This is not to mention the need to reconsider the purity of the basis for obtaining our citizenship in case an official in any department of the FMS is caught taking a bribe. Literally: we caught a corrupt official in the department – we have been checking every passport issued by this department for the last 10 years. The same applies to forgery of exams in Russian. There were corresponding arrests, but I have not seen any reports of the cancellation of passports issued on the basis of these teachers’ certificates.

I would like Russia to approach its migration policy with one unconditional principle: we do not import crime and we do not diminish culture. No way, not through any channels. At least you were convicted of stealing a bicycle? That’s it, don’t come to us. Did you do something here? Goodbye! Did you manage to get our passport? Give it and go home! And if you raped, killed, sold drugs here… Expulsion and ban. I won’t even spend money to keep them in prison: home! Let them feed her there. Even if you spit on the street, listen to loud music, hit your wife, curse the seller in the kiosk – if you get caught three times, for example, give your passport. We do not import undersized crops. Period.

I am afraid that today the desire for a complete ban on the import of crime, rudeness, backwardness and vulgarity is shared by almost all inhabitants of the country, from janitors to State Duma deputies, heads of the Investigative Committee and the Prosecutor General’s Office. But for now we can safely sue the Ministry of Justice so that a foreigner who has served time for the murder of a Russian has the right to stay in our country and continue to kill.

The author expresses his personal opinion, which may not coincide with the editors’ position.